A series spawned by Reddit user TheNman1 (A.K.A, me!) and contributed to by myself and other people on the Brantsteele subreddit, Playhouse is a series dedicated to adding character to the simulation so that viewers have more connection and a sense of character and story as they view the simulation. Half or more of the characters in each series are submitted to me by Reddit users (with their permission, of course) and the remaining cast is created by me.

In this first season of Playhouse, I decide to introduce the series with bare basics: twelve-person cast, only HoH's, and a few twists that come into play towards the endgame. This season is known for being a great kick-off to the season, with many betrayals, friendships, and interesting dynamics throughout that keep things entertaining throughout the whole season.

Contents

Twists

No Power of Veto: Due to this being the introductory season, the Power of Veto has not come into existence in this series yet. Instead, there will only be Head of Household competitions each week.

Jury of Nine, Final Two: Self-explanatory.

Jury Removal: Both finalists, upon finale night, at the choice to negate one juror's jury vote after they had casted it.

Houseguests

Name

Age

Occupation

Aron Nicholson

25

Singer/Songwriter

Celia Hanson

23

Cheerleader

Darryl Gralmens

28

Computer Technician

Dennis Nevin

43

...Obscure Film Maker..

Edmond Charleston

67

Retired

Joe Robert

31

Office Employee

Lillian 'Lily' Mallow Evans

21

Broadway Actress

Mai Ngo

28

Dental Assistant

Meru Scoth

25

Trapeze Artist

Nox Metterling

34

Psychologist

Quincy Banleesh

32

Attorney

Roxanne 'Rocks' Lazuli

27

Geologist

Winner

Lily

Runner-Up

Nox

Jury: Lily

Mai

Jury: Nox

Darryl

Jury: Lily

Aron

Jury: Lily

Celia

Jury: Nox

Meru

Jury: Lily

Joe

Jury: Nox

Rocks

Jury: Lily

Quincy

Jury: Lily

Edmond

Evicted

Dennis

Nomination Table

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6

Week 7

Week 8

Week 9

Week 10

FINALE

Evictionvotesreceived

Head ofHousehold

Meru

Nox

Aron

Lily

Darryl

Aron

Lily

Nox

Lily

Lily

Nominations

DennisQuincy

CeliaEdmond

MeruQuincy

CeliaRocks

JoeMeru

NoxMeru

CeliaDarryl

AronDarryl

DarrylMai

MaiNox

Lily

Dennis

Celia

Quincy

Head of Household

Meru

Meru

Head of Household

Darryl

Head of Household

Mai

Winner

0

Nox

Dennis

Head of Household

Quincy

Celia

Joe

Nominated

Celia

Aron

Darryl

Nominated

Runner-Up

1

Mai

Dennis

Edmond

Meru

Rocks

Meru

Meru

Celia

Aron

Nominated

Nominated

Lily

1

Darryl

Quincy

Celia

Quincy

Rocks

Head of Household

Meru

Nominated

Nominated

Nominated

Evicted(Day 68)

Nox

3

Aron

Quincy

Edmond

Head of Household

Rocks

Joe

Head of Household

Darryl

Nominated

Evicted(Day 61)

Lily

2

Celia

Dennis

Nominated

Quincy

Nominated

Joe

Nox

Nominated

Evicted(Day 54)

Lily

6

Meru

Head of Household

Dennis

Nominated

Quincy

Nominated

Nominated

Evicted(Day 47)

Nox

6

Joe

Quincy

Edmond

Quincy

Rocks

Nominated

Evicted(Day 40)

Lily

3

Rocks

Dennis

Edmond

Quincy

Nominated

Evicted(Day 33)

Nox

5

Quincy

Nominated

Celia

Nominated

Evicted(Day 26)

Lily

10

Edmond

Quincy

Nominated

Evicted(Day 19)

Lily

5

Dennis

Nominated

Evicted(Day 12)

5

Weekly Summary

12 Houseguests enter the house, each of them with their own backgrounds, struggles, and goals. They're all very unique, but there is one common thing holding them together, and yet at the same time keeping them from being a unified group: they all want to win by being the last person standing inside the playhouse.

Week 1

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 1

Meru

Dennis & Quincy

Dennis

The houseguests enter the house in groups of four and begin introducing themselves to each other, all excited to be a part of the game. Right away, Nox begins looking for potential allies and is initially drawn towards Aron, Darryl, Celia, Meru, and Rocks as they all had more extraverted and energetic personalities.

Lily is very intimidated, her social anxiety kicking back in at all these personalities and people around her. She isolates herself from the rest of the house a bit, but finds herself being approached by Edmond who notices her discomfort. Edmond tries to keep Lily company and make her feel more comfortable. At first Lily is creeped out, but slowly becomes eased after finding out that Edmond's intentions were good.

Mai and Darryl get along very well, and Darryl proposes a duo alliance with her when suddenly Joe turns the corner and interrupts them. Joe notices what was going on, and promises that he'll keep quiet about it if the two of them promise to let him join as a third in their alliance. Begrudgingly, the pair agrees. Joe leaves, and Mai suggests getting Joe out ASAP, but Darryl calms her down and tells her that they will try getting out Joe in a later week.

Dennis was going around, talking primarily to the females in the house. He spoke to them in a somewhat condescending tone, and tried making alliance deals with every girl in the house. The women mutually agreed with each other that Dennis was coming off as creepy, and revealed to one another of Dennis's attempts at making alliances. Mai spoke to Darryl about it, and in response Darryl told Mai that he wasn't getting any deals or being talked to much by Dennis. Darryl talked about it with Joe, and Joe and Darryl both concluded that Dennis was only making alliance deals with the girls in the house. They told Mai this information, who only even more creeped out from hearing it.

The first competition occurs, and Meru wins HoH. At this point, Nox had already made an alliance between himself, Meru, Darryl, Celia, and Rocks, leaving out Aron only because Nox didn't want to have half the house in an alliance during the first week, and felt Aron would be the first gone out of the group anyways if the alliance of six did stick together all the way. They meet in the HoH room, discussing potential targets. Celia, Rocks, and Meru all agreed that Dennis was being creepy and should get evicted as soon as possible. Darryl suggested nominating Quincy, since it seemed like she was only making small talk with people so far and not making any deals or alliances, therefore no one would care if she were on the block. Nox wanted to see Aron nominated, saying that Aron seemed like a potential social threat in the weeks to come, but not revealing that he was actually paranoid of Aron catching on to Nox leaving him out of the alliance after they had a few small strategy talks earlier in the week.

Meru ends up nominating Dennis and Quincy. Dennis is surprised, but keeps a calm demeanor. Quincy raises an eyebrow, confused as to why she was nominated when she felt like she hadn't done anything worthy of being nominated yet.

After the nomination ceremony, Dennis tries to reinforce his deals with the girls to try and secure votes to stay another week. This just creeps out the girls more, who're all dead-set on evicting Dennis this week. Darryl, however, notices that the girls only make up four of the votes for this eviction due to Meru being HoH and Quincy being a nominee, meaning the boys could control the vote with a collective five votes if they all stuck together. Darryl proceeds to go around, telling all the guys that if they vote to evict Quincy, then the girls will continue to go after Dennis next week, essentially giving them a shield to guarantee themselves another week in the game. The other guys see his strategic reasoning and at first are all on board with it--Aron, Joe, and Nox being on board due to not being afraid to play the game, and Edmond being on board as he wanted Dennis to stay anyways, as they had bonded quite a bit just by being the two oldest men in the house.

Later, Nox is socializing with Meru, getting along with her the most out of everyone in his alliance. Meru tells Nox how excited she is that she's in the game and doing so well, and how scared she was that things wouldn't go well her first week. Meru thought that there would be a huge split in the house or that she'd have to make a hard decision, but was really happy that it seemed to be an easy and unified decision to take out Dennis this week. Nox sighed, and rethought about the plan to take out Dennis. Did he really want to make a big strategic move in the first week, or did he want to show loyalty to Meru and the alliance, especially since the alliance had three girls in it anyways?

At the eviction ceremony, the players vote one by one. Once the votes are tallied, the result is revealed. In a close 5-4 vote...Dennis becomes the first person evicted from the playhouse. The girls all smile, while Darryl narrows his eyebrows in confusion. Nox looks away from Dennis as the vote is revealed, and Dennis stands up, calmly straightening his suit jacket before giving a brief goodbye, grabbing his bags, and walking out the front doors.

Votes for Dennis: Mai, Celia, Rocks, Lily, and Nox

Votes for Quincy: Joe, Darryl, Aron, and Edmond

Week 2

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 2

Nox

Celia & Edmond

Edmond

Immediately after the eviction ceremony, Nox motions for Darryl to talk with him privately. There, Nox explains to Darryl that he didn't want to betray the trust of the girls so quickly, especially since three of the girls were in their alliance. Darryl understands, and appreciates that Nox explained the whole thing to him right away instead of lying or trying to throw one of the other guys under the bus.

Meanwhile, Edmond meets again with Lily, apologizing for not voting the same way as her. Lily accepts the apology, and doesn't mind, as Dennis was probably going to leave this week or the next week anyways. Darryl bumps into the two and is about to turn away for interrupting until Edmond insists for Darryl to stay and talk with them. Darryl shrugs and joins them. From there, Edmond begins telling the two of his past experiences, entertaining them with stories of adventure and intrigue.

Celia and Aron end up talking and getting along quite a bit. Aron is attracted to Celia, and ends up getting a crush on her. Celia notices this in the way he acts and talks, and begins flirting with him to keep him interested. The two end up forming a duo alliance, agreeing to work together and never go against each other no matter what.

Joe and Quincy are chatting casually, making small talk as most conversations with Quincy are. Joe attempts to talk strategy with Quincy, just to see what the result would be or if he could get any sort of useful information from her. However, as soon as he starts, Quincy turns it down and tries changing the subject. Joe persists, wanting to at least make some sort of deal or something. Quincy gets fed up with this, and ends up leaving the area to go and talk to someone else. Joe sits, confused and aggravated as to why Quincy won't talk strategy with anyone this far into the game.

Nox, Meru, and Rocks talk and joke with each other in the HoH room. Nox already has a solid bond with Meru, and only gets along with Rocks just as well due to their similar personalities. Seeing the opportunity, Nox proposed an alliance between the three of them--a core alliance within the alliance of five they already have, just in case things get shaky in the coming weeks. Rocks and Meru gladly agree, feeling safe and secure with Nox on their side.

At the second competition, Nox wins HoH, maintaining his position of power and control within the house. The alliance of five meet within the HoH room again, this time having a harder time deciding who to nominate. Nox still feels irrationally wary of Aron, but Meru and Celia want to nominate Joe as he hasn't talked strategy with either of them yet. Rocks doesn't really have a preference, and Darryl suggests nominating Quincy again due to hearing that she is actively refusing to talk strategy with people--information he got from Joe.

Nox decided to talk to people outside of the alliance as well, to gain some perspective on the house dynamics. He ends up finding out that Edmond and Lily are close as they both speak highly of one another in their one on one talks with Nox, as well as Aron being very adamant about not wanting Celia to be put up on the block tipping off Nox of their potential alliance. Nox decides to meet with Darryl privately, seeing as Darryl is a heavily strategic guy and would offer good advice on how to handle the nominations. When Nox tells Darryl of his suspicions of the Edmond/Lily pair, Darryl confirms this by saying that he bumped into Lily and Edmond talking one on one earlier in the week, and has seen them off together by themselves quite a bit now that he thought about it. Nox also talks about his suspicions of an alliance between Celia and Aron. Darryl raises an eyebrow to this, intrigued at the information. Darryl ends up suggesting that Nox nominate one from each pair, just to see how the other suspected half of the pair reacts. With that, Darryl leaves and allows Nox to think.

After some thought alone in the HoH room, Nox ends up nominating Edmond and Celia at the nomination ceremony. Edmond frowned, but then nodded in understanding a moment later. Celia went wide-eyed and looked at Nox in confusion.

After the nomination ceremony, Celia demanded to meet alone with Nox. They went up to the HoH room, where Celia demanded to know why she was nominated if they were supposed to be aligned together. Nox told her to calm down a little, and explained that she was merely a pawn for the week--that he just wanted to have someone to go against Edmond to guarantee Edmond leaving the house. He also claimed that he did it to hide the fact that they were aligned, throwing off any early suspicion that might exist. In truth, Nox nominated Celia to see how she'd react, while also testing the Aron/Celia pair without potentially pissing off Aron by directly nominating him, as Nox was still paranoid of Aron catching onto and going after him.

Celia acted calm and cool on the surface, saying she understood and was glad he explained. However, Celia actually was very offended and felt betrayed by this, thinking that if Nox was this willing to put up someone from his alliance this early, how loyal would he truly be to her in the future?

Mai, Joe, and Darryl met together again. Mai and Joe were a little confused about why Edmond and Celia were nominated, so Darryl cleared it up by explaining the pair suspicions to the both of them. Mai then said they should probably go after Edmond, since now that she thought about it, Edmond and Lily did seem pretty close together the past few days. She also felt like Celia could be worked with better than Edmond, as Edmond didn't seem like a very strategic or logical person. Joe agreed with this, and Darryl decided to agree with it for now as well.

Aron and Celia got together, both expressing anger and discontent towards Nox--Aron moreso than Celia, surprisingly. Celia ended up calming Aron down, telling him that it was okay and that she would get the votes to stay in the game. Aron declared he would work his ass off to help her stay as well, as he wasn't about to lose her so quickly. Not without a fight.

Lily and Edmond met together once again, Lily fretting and worrying over Edmond's ability to stay in the house, as he hadn't been making very many deals or socializing with anyone as much as he had been with her. Edmond assured her it was okay, and that either way it would turn out fine. Lily started tearing up, claiming that she was too afraid to talk to the other players on her own and that she needed Edmond to stay in the game to help her. Edmond hushed her and said that she was stronger than she thought. He reminded her that she had already gone through the struggle of dealing with social anxiety before, and that she could get past it just as well here as well, with or without him around to help her. Lily smiled, hugging Edmond. Edmond was taken back by surprise, but returned the hug.

Just before the eviction ceremony occurred, Darryl met with Quincy. Darryl began talking strategy with her, only to be quickly shut down. Not wanting to push it, Darryl simply told Quincy to vote Celia, just to make her paranoid about getting votes this week. Quincy shrugged and agreed to it.

At the eviction, the players stood up and voted one by one. Once the votes are tallied, the result is revealed. By a vote of 5-3...Edmond is the second person evicted from the playhouse. Lily starts tearing up as Edmond rises, sighing and smiling, looking down at the floor. After a moment, he looked up and waved goodbye to everyone, walking over to Lily and wiping the tears off her eyes. He then grabbed his bags, and headed out the front doors.

Votes for Edmond: Meru, Mai, Joe, Aron, and Rocks

Votes for Celia: Lily, Quincy, and Darryl

Week 3

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 3

Aron

Meru & Quincy

Quincy

After the eviction, Lily isolated herself from most of the house, not knowing how to really communicate effectively with the others. She didn't really feel motivated to, anyways. However, Joe noticed her sitting alone and decided to join her, attempting to cheer her up. It didn't help as much as when Edmond tried to, but it was better than nothing for Lily and she appreciated Joe's concern. They bonded for a bit.

Meru spontaneously called for a house meeting. Everyone shows up to the living room, confused and eager to know what the meeting was about. Meru reveals to everyone that she's...performing a talent show for the whole house, just for fun! She entertains the other players with various tricks, such as dancing, singing, and some gymnastic moves. Everyone was entertained...except Mai, who was instead annoyed by Meru and felt she was doing it to try and show off and gain attention.

Aron and Celia were thankful that the vote went their way at the last eviction. However, Celia was still concerned over three people voting her. If a fourth vote had gone her way, Nox would've been the tie-breaking vote, and Celia wasn't so confident in Nox keeping her around anymore. Aron brought up that they could rope in Lily for a three person alliance, seeing as Lily no longer had any real friends or allies to depend on. Celia giggled and said that Aron was so smart, causing him to blush a bit. The two then walked around the house looking for Lily, only to find Lily and Joe chatting and giggling together. Aron hesitated, but Celia didn't mind Joe being there and walked up to the two, talking to them and slowly leading the conversation to an alliance proposal. Joe couldn't believe his luck, as being in the right place at the right time had just landed him in two alliances that he didn't have to lift a finger to create. Joe urged Lily to trust the pair, and Lily hesitantly agreed to the alliance, feeling a little rushed into things. They all shook hands on it.

In the third competition, Aron won HoH. Glad to be in a better position where he can make things happen, Aron invited Celia, Joe, and Lily up to the HoH room for celebration and chat. Aron and Celia cuddled up on the HoH bed, while Joe and Lily sat on the chairs discussing who to nominate. Lily didn't really know how many people stood in the house or what certain people were doing, so she was fine with anything as long as it wasn't anyone in the HoH room currently. Joe pushed for Quincy to be nominated, stating that she was infuriating to try and talk to as she asks the same few questions every time and refuses to talk about strategy. Aron wanted to get back at Nox for putting up Celia, but Celia said to hold onto that thought for later.

The group of four talked about it a bit more, until Aron dismissed Joe and Lily a little later. Celia then turned to Aron, saying that Nox had connections and allies who would not appreciate seeing him nominated so soon. Celia suggested nominating an ally of Nox's to try and weaken him. Aron thought about this, and decided it would be more strategically sound to go with that plan of action. It was at this time that Celia decided to spill the alliance of five to Aron, revealing they had been working well together, but that Celia was more than ready to mutiny from the group to be with Aron and stay on his side.

At the nomination ceremony, Aron ultimately nominated Quincy and Meru. Quincy rolled her eyes in response, while Meru looked a little saddened. Aron nominated Meru as his target, wanting to see if he could make a strike against Nox by taking down one of his trusted allies. He nominated Quincy as well, as she still hadn't talked strategy with anyone, and if Aron failed to get the votes to take out Meru then Quincy would be an easy and safe backup plan to throw the votes into instead.

After the nomination ceremony, Meru asks Aron if they could meet privately. They both go up to the HoH room, and Meru asks why she was nominated. Aron answers that he wanted to ensure Quincy going home, and that he knew she had enough allies to protect her this week. This alarmed her, and she asked him how he knew that she had so many allies. Aron stumbled his words, and gave a weak answer along the lines of because she was so likable, he just assumed that she must've had quite a few allies that wanted her on their side. Meru nodded, then walked out of the room. Aron facepalmed himself for his stupid slip-up.

While that meeting between Meru and Aron was happening, Celia was talking to Joe and Lily about their plan to strike against Nox by taking out Meru, who Celia knew was a close ally of Nox's. Lily was very on board with this plan, considering that it was Nox who put up Edmond last week which led to his eviction. Joe agreed to it in front of Celia, but as soon as she left, he told Lily that he wanted Quincy out instead. Joe was very pissed at Quincy's behavior, and didn't want to have to deal with her for another seven days of the same stuff. Lily, not wanting to disagree in fear of angering Joe, decided to just go along with his plan of voting Quincy out.

Meru and Nox were cuddling with each other, Nox comforting her as Meru had been upset and fretful ever since she got nominated. She asked Nox if she would be okay, and Nox reassured her that she was fine. He believed that the alliance of five was still strong, and she was the only one out of the five who couldn't vote that week, but they only needed four votes for a majority anyways. He said that even if the other three voted to evict her for some reason, that he had secured her safety into the next week. Meru thanked him for this. They kept cuddling with each other.

Celia went to Mai and Rocks, pitching to them the idea of taking out Meru in a blindside and weakening Nox's grip on the game. She felt that Mai was just kind of a floater in the house and that her vote could be easily obtained, and that Rocks was the most wishy-washy of the alliance of five. Mai was on board with the plan, as she was already getting slowly annoyed by Meru and her antics. Rocks claimed that she was on board with it, but was just lying to Celia. Rocks had the three person alliance with Nox and Meru that no one else knew about, and she didn't want to get rid of something so advantageous to her so quickly.

Rocks decides to tell Darryl about Celia going behind the alliance of five and wanting to evict Meru. She didn't want Nox or Meru to know about it yet, though, as she didn't want to worry or alarm them. Darryl nodded his head in agreement and thanked Rocks for telling him this. Darryl told her to stay with the plan of evicting Quincy, and that he'd personally confront Celia himself. Rocks was hesitant about Darryl confronting Celia, but eventually just let him go and do it, as he trusted him to speak to her calmly and intelligently.

Darryl met with Celia privately about an hour before the eviction ceremony was going to start. He told her that he knew of her plans to take out Meru. Celia denied those claims, saying that whoever was telling him this was making up stuff. Darryl then said that Celia had nothing to worry about, the vote was looking to be a unanimous one and if it was a unanimous vote to evict Quincy, then no one would be suspicious of Celia turning on the alliance of five. He then left the room they were on, leaving Celia feeling a little threatened and scared.

At the eviction vote, the players voted one by one. Once the votes were tallied, the results were revealed. By a vote of 6-1...Quincy was the third person evicted from the playhouse. She shrugged, and said she had a good time--that the game was a nice little break from the stress of her day-to-day life. With that, she picked up her bags, gave one last goodbye, and left through the front doors.

Votes for Quincy: Nox, Darryl, Joe, Rocks, Lily, and Celia

Votes for Meru: Mai

Week 4

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 4

Lily

Celia & Rocks

Rocks

After the eviction ceremony, Aron meets up with Celia. Aron is confused as to why Quincy was taken out with so many votes and how Meru only got one. Celia explained that the alliance was stronger than she thought, and that they would have to attack it from a different angle.

Darryl saw the vote result was 6-1, and suspected that Celia was the one who still voted for Meru. He decided to inform Meru and Nox of Celia's betrayal attempt. The pair reacted surprised, and at first didn't really believe it, so Darryl brought Rocks over to confirm the story for them. Meru was upset over this, while Nox felt very betrayed, determined to get out Celia at all costs.

Joe and Lily were talking again, and as they were Joe was slowly realizing that they, Mai, and Darryl were in the middle of an alliance war--Aron/Celia versus Nox/Meru/Rocks. Joe explained this to Lily, and said that if they played their cards right, they could play the middle and flip between sides all the way to the finale. Lily asked how to do this, and Joe claimed the best way to go about it would be to actively force both sides against each other every time by nominating one person from each side. Lily nodded, starting to understand the dynamics of the house and how to strategically get around them.

Nox called for a meeting with Rocks and Meru, and asked Rocks why she didn't tell them about Celia's betrayal before the eviction ceremony. Rocks said that she didn't want them to worry about getting evicted. Meru responded by saying she was already worried of getting evicted, and that being informed about it would've helped them better plan or prepare to secure the votes for sure. Nox told Meru to calm down, and believed that it was still okay that Rocks told them, even if it was a little delayed. Meru settled down for Nox, but was still ticked at Rocks, a trusted ally, for not telling her about a plan that could've gotten her evicted.

In the fourth competition of the season, Lily won HoH. After the competition, Joe quickly got them both into the HoH room privately. They celebrated and cheered a little, but quietly enough so no one outside the room could hear them. Joe then said they were in the strongest position in this house, but that they'd have to be careful in order to stay this way.

Joe told Lily to invite up Mai and Darryl, which she did. Once inside, Joe revealed to Lily that he had been in an alliance with the pair, and asked the pair if Lily could join them. Mai was hesitant, but let Darryl make the decision. Darryl thought for a moment, then said sure, since he didn't want to turn down an alliance member--especially one currently in power for the week. However, in his head he thought about how Joe was rushing into these things, and how helpful he'd truly be in future weeks if he kept up this behavior. Joe then revealed his plan of them four playing the middle and controlling the alliance war between Aron/Celia and Nox/Rocks/Meru. Darryl thought it was a genius proposition, and secretly liked it even more because Joe was the one coming up with the plan, meaning Darryl could make Joe take the blame for it if the plan were to backfire. Darryl suggested that Lily nominate Rocks, as she was the one with the weakest connections in the house out of the trio of Nox/Rocks/Meru. He then said that it'd probably be best for them to decide who to nominate between Aron and Celia. Joe then excused Mai and Darryl out of the room, thanking them for their contribution to the plan.

Aron and Celia went into the HoH room with Joe and Lily, Aron demanding to know why they voted for Quincy instead of Meru as planned. Joe took full responsibility, not wanting Lily to take any heat since it was his idea anyways that they go against Celia's plan. Joe claimed that they still have opportunities to take out Nox and his crew, like this week, and that Quincy was being very uncooperative and wouldn't have been help to anybody in the house with the way she was avoiding strategy talk constantly. Aron calmed down a bit, but reminded them that all four of them were in an alliance--they shook hands on it. Celia said that if they wanted to have the best shot at taking them down, nominating Rocks would be their best bet. Aron and Celia then left the HoH room.

Lily realized that Joe was doing all the talking for them even though she was the HoH making the decisions. She apologized to Joe for making him talk so much and putting himself out there for the others, but he said he didn't mind--he didn't want her getting screwed over if any of the plans they made backfired. Lily appreciated his loyalty. Joe then decided to apologize to Lily, admitting that he voted to evict Edmond and only realized afterwards how close they were. Lily accepts the apology, and says that she's moved on a bit from Edmond being evicted. She admits that Joe has kind of stepped into Edmond's role for her--a person who cares about her and wants to help her succeed. Joe smiles, saying he's glad he could help her. He then reveals that he came into this game just being a mundane office employee, a generic kind of guy who didn't think much of himself. However, being in this game, participating in the strategy, meeting these new people and helping out Lily...it's given him a feeling of purpose and worth, one he didn't realize he lacked before. They both smiled at one another.

At the nomination ceremony, Lily timidly nominates Rocks and Celia. Celia frowns and glares at Lily, who looks away from her. Aron pounds a fist on the table in anger. Rocks has a confused expression on her face, unsure of why she was nominated.

Immediately after the nomination ceremony, Aron loudly says for everyone to never trust Joe and Lily with anything they say. Joe tells him to calm down, but Aron bites back by reminding him and alerting the whole house that they made a deal. Aron says when he makes a deal, he's loyal to it 100%, telling Joe that he expected the same amount of loyalty back. He then goes to Lily, about to yell at her, until Joe tells him to keep her out of it--it was all his idea. Aron then tries asking Lily why she can't make decisions for herself, and why she has to follow such a disloyal and manipulative person. Lily doesn't say anything, trying to get away from Aron. Joe tells Aron that if he has beef, to take it out on him privately--no one else has to be brought into this. Aron calms down a bit, nodding his head and agreeing to meet in a room privately with Joe. They walk away, leaving the rest of the house a little blown away at the fight that just occurred.

Nox, Meru, and Rocks meet with each other. Rocks asks Nox what she should do to try and keep herself safe this week. Nox says that if that huge fight was any indication, that Aron and Celia will just draw negative attention onto themselves, telling Rocks that she should just stay quiet and let them sink themselves. Rocks thanks Nox for the advice, and goes in to try and cuddle with him. Meru looks at her judgmentally, and Nox tries pushing her away, saying that he needs a bit of personal space every once in a while. Rocks insists on cuddling, but after a bit more resistance frowns and keeps her distance from Nox. Nox looks over at Meru glaring at Rocks.

Darryl and Mai meet with each other one on one. Mai asks who they should try to go after, and Darryl says he can guarantee a near-unanimous vote to take out Rocks this round. Mai nods, and allows him to go and work his magic. Darryl goes to Joe, asking him if he's alright after that fight. Joe says he's fine, he was more concerned about Lily getting bashed anyways so he did what he had to. Darryl asks him who he wants to vote, and Joe says that while he did just make himself a public enemy to Celia and Aron, he knows it's smarter to take a shot against Nox and his alliance--especially now, since they aren't expecting it at all. Darryl nods, agreeing with everything he said. Darryl then went over to Meru, who he knew was close to Nox. Darryl lied to her that Nox made a final two deal with Rocks and told him about it, wanting to keep it secret. Meru was shocked by this, but believed it with how things were going between Nox and Rocks lately.

Aron and Celia sat in silence, Aron writing something down in a notebook he brought with him. Eventually Celia asked what he was writing, and Aron told her that he was writing a song about their time in the game. She asked if he would sing it, and he said sure, but warned her that he didn't have his guitar on him so he might sing a little off-pitch in certain areas. He then began to sing about how they met up, clicked together, and since then have been getting screwed and pissed on. He sang that there hadn't been a pair in quite a terrible position as them, but proclaimed that they would find a way out of this rut somehow. Celia giggled and smiled as he sang, and clapped when he finished. She realized how much Aron truly did care about her, and started to grow feelings for him herself. She cuddled up next to him, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. He said that if this was the last moment they shared together in the house, that it would be a moment he'd remember for the rest of his life. They smiled, holding each other close.

At the eviction ceremony, the votes were cast one by one. Once the votes were tallied, the results were revealed. By a vote of 6-1...Rocks became the fourth person evicted from the playhouse.

Celia had a very relieved expression, while Aron had a huge grin on his face. Meru smirked. Rocks looked dumbfounded as she stood up to say goodbye, but not as dumbfounded as Nox, who was looking down at the ground, eyebrows narrowed, in complete shock and confusion--his control in the game had suddenly slipped a little. Rocks said goodbye to everyone, grabbed her bags, and walked out the front doors of the playhouse, still very confused as to what happened that week.

Votes for Rocks: Aron, Mai, Joe, Darryl, and Meru

Votes for Celia: Nox

Week 5

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 5

Darryl

Joe & Meru

Joe

After the eviction ceremony, Nox and Meru cuddled up with each other in another room. They stayed silent with one another for a while. Nox then asked Meru why she voted Rocks. Meru hesitated, but then revealed that she felt intimidated by Rocks and felt like he was favoring Rocks over her. They stayed silent for a bit again. Then Meru asked if they'd be okay in the coming weeks. Nox sighed, and admitted that as it stood it seemed very tough--the whole house was in shambles and there wasn't any solid group alliance in sight. He said it was possible, but they'd have to be careful or else they could crumble. Meru held tighter to Nox, saying she was scared. Nox claimed that he would protect her no matter what.

Meanwhile, Aron and Celia were celebrating, not having to be split apart from each other just yet. Darryl walks in on their celebration, and apologizes for interrupting, but proceeds to tell them that he helped save Celia that week. Celia went over and hugged Darryl, thanking him and saying that they would gladly do something in return to help him out this week. Darryl appreciated that, and said he'd keep it in mind and tell them if it was necessary. He then left the room and allowed them to continue celebrating.

Lily and Joe were chatting a bit. At a point in the conversation, Joe said to Lily that he wasn't sure how much time he had left in the game. He had burned quite a few bridges just in that previous eviction and could very well be sent home depending on who was nominated. Joe then said that he wanted Lily to be prepared to be on her own again. He wanted her to go and talk to people, feel out the dynamics of the house, and maybe make a deal or two to secure her spot in the coming weeks, as the house was a wreck and in shambles. Lily asked how he knew the house was in shambles, and Joe said that he could tell because nobody was in power. Yet. That could all change, though, depending on who gets together with who. Lily nodded her head, and thanked him for the advice and the warning that he'd probably be evicted soon. With that, Lily stood up to go and try to talk to the others, leaving Joe to sit silently and think about how to make his last stand.

In the fifth competition of the game. Darryl wins HoH. Upon winning, Darryl immediately called up Mai, wanting her to be present for everyone discussion they had with the other players. He told Mai to listen for any discrepancies within what is said, and to let him do the talking for them. Mai says that's fine, as she was going to lean towards doing whatever he wanted to do for the nominations and eviction this week anyways.

The first pair to come in were Nox and Meru. When they first entered, Meru made an over-the-top entrance with some confetti she made from cutting up little bits of paper they had around the house. Darryl smiled, amused, Nox giggled his way in, and Mai rolled her eyes, still seeing Meru as excessive and attention-wanting. Nox spoke to Darryl, saying that even if they did vote against Rocks the last eviction, he doesn't care--it's a new week, and him and Darryl have been on very good terms and still are. Nox asks to spare them both from eviction, so that they can go to the final four together as this group. Darryl said that he had lots of respect towards Nox as a person and a player, and enjoyed Meru's company and antics in the house immensely, and assured them that they would both make it to the next week.

Next up, Aron and Celia entered. Aron was about to speak up, but then Celia shushed him and spoke for them instead. Celia said that now that Nox was knocked out of power, if the four of them stayed solid they could go to the final four together. She said that this week, however, they had to focus on taking out the outlier Joe. He was starting to become a strategic threat in the game and would be in a threatening position to go deeper if he survived the week. Darryl agreed with them 100%, having been on shaky terms with Joe since the first week and now seeing that he was starting to make moves without fear of consequence. Darryl assured them that Joe would go up on the block that week. The two left, Aron looking particularly satisfied.

Finally, Joe and Lily entered the HoH room. Joe started by saying he knew he was a large target, but that if they could work together for at least a week or two instead of getting him out right away, then everyone would focus on him instead of Darryl. He also brought up that Nox still had Meru as a loyal number, and while he might've been out of power at the moment, he could easily slip through the current cracks and make his way to the end if given the opportunity. In Darryl's mind, he didn't want to take out Nox--he respected Nox and considered him to be a very loyal person who depended on him. However on the surface, he merely agreed with Joe, saying he would think on it and would get an answer at the nomination ceremony. He excused them from the room, but Lily asked if she could stay and talk privately, without Joe. Darryl looked at Mai, who shrugged, and they allowed her to talk alone with them. Joe left the room, and Lily said that she knew Joe was most likely going. However, she was willing to work with them both all the same in the coming weeks...but only if they didn't nominate her next to Joe as a pawn or anything. Darryl raised an eyebrow, and said he'd be fine with that, excusing Lily from the room.

At the nomination ceremony, Darryl calmly revealed that he nominated Joe and Meru. He nominated Joe as the target, and put up Meru as the pawn as per Mia's request, as well as not wanting to put up Nox or Lily, and keeping the Aron/Celia pair happy by steering them away from the block. Joe didn't really react, he had already expected this to happen. Meru frowned a bit in response.

After the nomination ceremony, Lily and Mai met up in a room. They talked and bonded for a bit, and Lily eventually asked why Mai followed around Darryl so much. Mai said that it was her strategy to follow around a stronger force, that way no one sees you as a target and you can surprise people when you finally pull off a move of your own. Lily then asked if Mai had made any game moves, and Mai responded saying that she had helped Darryl make a lot of his decisions, so that she could claim responsibility over his moves if she made it to the end without him. Lily didn't think Mai was really making that many moves, or any at all, but just nodded while listening.

Celia and Meru were talking, bonding over their gymnastics-based occupations. Meru says she always wanted to be a cheerleader for big crowds, but was only a cheerleader at her high school in a small town. It was fun, but not very energetic or motivating. Celia asked how dangerous the trapeze shows were, and Meru responded that they're only as dangerous as their most sporadic performer, so the shows she was in were always super dangerous for all involved. Celia giggled at that.

Aron was sitting by himself, writing out song lyrics and trying to sing out the notes. Joe approached him, and Aron stood up to try and walk away. Joe told him to wait, wanting to apologize for what happened last week and that he helped Celia stay that week anyways. Aron claimed that Joe didn't do shit to help Celia stay, and didn't accept the apology. Aron walked to a different area of the house. Joe was left alone, feeling guilty.

At the eviction ceremony, the players voted one by one. Once all the votes were casted, the results were revealed. By a close vote of 3-2...Joe became the fifth person evicted from the playhouse.

Joe sighed, stood up, and smiled. He said goodbye to everyone, extended a hand out to Lily, who high-fived it, picked up his bags, and walked out the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Joe: Aron, Nox, and Celia

Votes for Meru: Mai and Lily

Week 6

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 6

Aron

Meru & Nox

Meru

And thus, Lily was alone once again. This time, however, she didn't isolate herself from the house. Instead, she looked at the house dynamics and noticed that everyone left, except for her, was in a pair: Darryl/Mai, Aron/Celia, and Nox/Meru. She also noticed that it seemed like both Aron/Celia and Nox/Meru also wanted to stick with Darryl/Mai, primarily because Darryl was there with his strategic mind putting him in power, and offering safety to both sides without the other side knowing. Lily knew that usurping Darryl from his current position of power would be deadly, as Joe proved when he stuck down Nox's hold over the house, so she would have to find a way to play the middle and weaken one of the sides so she could take on Darryl later. She started thinking of ways to go about it.

Nox and Aron were talking to each other, bonding a little. Nox asked him how he truly felt about Celia, and Aron responded that she was the best thing to happen to her, both in this game and in his life within the past few years. Aron tells Nox that he's had experiences with other girls before, started dating back when he was sixteen, but all four of his previous girlfriends haven't been very kind to him. He kept finding himself putting out so much effort for them and dedicating his life to them, distancing himself from friends and eventually family, only to never get half as much dedication and affection in return. Aron kept feeling betrayed by them, but it never stopped him from trying to find someone who would appreciate his loyalty. Which is why he's so glad he got to meet Celia in the house. Nox smiled at that story, grabbing a bottle of liquor, pouring out two glasses, and handing one to him. Nox said he was glad that Aron finally found a good one, a proposed a toast to loyalty. Aron smiled, clinked glasses with Nox, and drank with him.

Darryl laid out on the bed in the HoH room by himself, arms behind his head. He smiled, thinking about how easy it was for him to seize control and how much easier it was looking like for him to keep it. He had thought over every scenario, and predicted that if things didn't drastically change within the next few weeks, that he'd be guaranteed into the final four no matter what. Suddenly he heard a knock at the door, and told the person to come in. Celia entered, and wanted to talk about targets for the next week. Darryl told her to sit down, and she did. Celia then started expressing concern over Lily, that she was a free agent who could be claimed by Nox and Meru if they weren't careful. Darryl waved it off, saying that Lily was just a floater anyways who couldn't make any huge game moves. He also assured Celia that he had secured Lily on their side already for the week at least, which is all they needed to strike down the Nox/Meru pair for good. The only thing that could save them for another week would be one of them winning HoH. Celia nodded, feeling satisfied, and left the HoH room. Darryl laid back down, smiling once more.

In the sixth competition, Aron won HoH for his second time. He was very proud to be the first person to win more than one completion in the house.

After the challenge, Aron got together with Celia, Darryl, and Mai in the HoH room, saying that they need to take out Nox this week before he gets the chance to win another HoH and screw one of them over. Mai brings up that Meru did win the first HoH competition, but Celia dismisses that by saying that a handful of people threw the first HoH because they didn't want to risk pissing people off early on. Mai pouts a little, but understands the reasoning. Darryl tries to reason with them, saying that he has ties with Nox and could try to sway Nox towards targeting Lily instead if he did win the HoH next week. Aron argues it's too dangerous to try working with him from here on out, especially with how small the numbers are getting. Darryl sighs, and finally agrees to target Nox this week with them. Aron asked them to shake hands on it, and Darryl hesitantly agreed to it, Mai following his lead.

After they left the HoH room, Mai asked Darryl if they were really going after Nox instead of Meru. Darryl said that he was just agreeing with them to hide how much him and Nox are really together. He said they were going after Meru instead of Nox, just to keep a secure and loyal number on their side as well as keep tension between the two sides. Mai smiled, happy to finally be able to get Meru out.

Lily was talking to Nox, and ended up apologizing to him for being a reason that Rocks was out of the house and he lost power. Nox admitted that he was pretty confused and initially pissed about it, but realized that everyone except for him voted against Rocks, so he couldn't stay mad at everyone forever if he wanted to keep moving forward in the game. However, he did say that he wanted her to become more independent and make decisions for herself. She shrugged, saying that now Joe was out of the house, she had to make decisions for herself at this point. Nox looked at her and thought for a moment, then asked her if she wanted to align with him and Meru. Lily said that she'd be fine with that, considering Aron and Celia did have a big hand in taking out Joe last week. Nox extended his hand, and Lily shook on it.

At the nomination ceremony, Aron nominated Nox and Meru as planned. Meru frowned, and Nox nodded, already expecting this to happen.

After the nominations ceremony, Darryl went up to Lily, telling her to vote for Meru instead of Nox. Darryl had a large, logical explanation ready to be spouted out, but before he had a chance to start saying it all, Lily agreed with him, saying she was going to vote to evict Meru anyways. He was a little taken aback, but ultimately glad they were on the same page.

Nox and Meru both cuddled with each other once more, finally cornered and pitted against one another. Nox asked Meru the first thing she'd do once she was out of the house if she was evicted this week. She thought about it, then said that she'd go and flip some cushions. Coach cushions, chair cushions, even bed mattresses. Anything she could find to flip over that people sit or lay down on. Nox smiled. Meru asked the same thing of Nox. He thought about it, then said he'd try and find some paper to shred just before he left the building so he could have his own confetti-filled exit out of the playhouse. Meru giggled at the thought. Meru then thanked Nox for helping her survive this long. Nox thanked Meru for making life interesting and bearable inside the house. They held each other close for a little longer.

At the eviction ceremony, the votes are casted one by one. Once all the vote are tallied, the results are revealed. By a vote of 3-1...Meru was the sixth person evicted from the playhouse.

Celia looked a little shocked, while Aron glared at Darryl, who looked right back at him in the eyes. Meru smiled, standing up and waving goodbye to everyone. She picked up her bags, and walked out the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Meru: Darryl, Lily, and Mai

Votes for Nox: Celia

Week 7

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 7

Lily

Celia & Darryl

Celia

Immediately after Meru closed the doors behind her, Aron stood up and yelled at Darryl and Mai. Celia urged him to calm down and think before he spoke, but Aron kept going, asking Darryl why he saved them one week only to screw then over the next. Darryl calmly said that the game was much more complex than staying loyal to someone for weeks on end. Aron barked back, saying he didn't care about the game's complexities--he had made it this far just fine without having to betray anyone, and he didn't have to start betraying people to get farther. Darryl smirked and wished Aron good luck with that. Aron boiled with anger, but Celia came up to me and tried to lead him away to a different room. After a bit of hesitation, Aron agreed, but not before telling Darryl that he was a dead man walking. Darryl laughed a little at that.

Nox and Lily met up after that fight occurred. Nox asked Lily if the deal they made last week was still active, and she said she didn't see why it wouldn't be. Nox then asked her if she wanted to go to the final two with him, and with no hesitation she agreed. Nox smiled, glad to slowly finding himself rising to power once again. Lily was happy to finally have a strong ally on her side, and one who seemed to be in a very good spot to stick around and make things happen without getting evicted for doing them. Lily then started expressing her concern towards Darryl and how much control he had over the house. Nox said that he wanted to split up the pair of Aron and Celia first, especially getting out Aron first, as he was on better terms with Darryl and Mai then he was with them. Lily said they could talk about it more later if necessary, since they couldn't come to a solid decision currently.

After she had calmed Aron down, Celia was cuddling up next to Aron. They were mostly silent since Aron was still pretty pissed off, and at this point Celia knew better than to try and talk normally to him when he was pissed. After a bit of time had passed, Aron asked Celia what she liked about him--what drew her towards him. Celia thought a little, and said that he was dedicated and driven, not afraid to be real with people, and a damn good singer. Aron smirked at that last part. Celia then went on to said that he made her feel appreciated. She revealed that she was actually one of the quieter girls on her cheerleading team, and usually didn't hang out with them after games or practices, watching reality TV shows instead. She revealed to him that she was a superfan of Big Brother. Aron was a little surprised to hear that she was a superfan, but it didn't change at all how he felt about her. She kept saying how, because of that, she didn’t have many friends or people that she cared about, or that cared about her. She admitted that she was really glad to somehow finally find a solid friend, maybe something more, in a game as chaotic and uncertain as this. A few more moments of silence passed. Celia leaned in and gave Aron another kiss on the cheek, before melting into his embrace. Aron smiled, looking up at the ceiling and wondering what he did to deserve this.

In the seventh competition of the game, Lily won HoH for her second time. This time, she was determined to make her own choices instead of having someone else control her abilities as HoH.

Darryl and Mai met with Lily in the HoH room. Darryl said that they could continue playing the middle and keep tension between the two sides by putting up Celia and Aron, making it a one on one battle between whoever sticks around with Nox. It'd be a straight shoot to the final three for all of them. Lily said it was a really good plan, but asked which one he'd want out before the other. Darryl said he would want Aron out before Celia, as Aron had his whole loyalty fiasco going on and had already won two HoH's before--he could very well win a third if he survived a little longer. Lily thanked them for coming in, and they left, Mai following Darryl out of the room.

Aron and Celia entered next, and Aron immediately wanted to make a deal with Lily. Lily knew better than to trap herself like the others did, and confidently said that she wasn't going to make deals with them. Celia was confused and asked why not, which had Lily respond by saying she already had deals with the others in the house and didn't want to upset Aron by making false promises to either one of them. Aron sighed, and then said that if either of them were to be nominated and evicted, to let it be him. Lily nodded and thanked them for at least coming up to talk to her, even if she didn't provide any good news. They both left in sorrow.

Nox came up to the room last. Lily told her about Aron being willing to sacrifice himself for Celia if they were nominated together. Nox thought about it, and saw it as an opportunity to finally get out Aron, someone who he was never fully comfortable with. Before he gave his input on that, Nox asked Lily what she was planning to do for the nominations. Lily said that she still wanted to get Darryl out this week. Nox sighed, then smirked as he got an idea. He told Lily that if she nominated Aron next to Darryl, that he would vote to evict Darryl. Lily didn't quite believe him, especially since he said earlier that he wanted to split up the pair, especially wanting Aron out. Lily said she'd most likely do that, and Nox said it was a plan. Nox left the room, leaving Lily to consider her options.

At the nomination ceremony, Lily revealed her nominations to be Celia and Darryl. Mai and Nox looked a little shocked, Celia frowned, Aron leaned back and put a hand over his face, slowly shaking his head in disapproval, and Darryl raised an eyebrow in intrigue, smirking. She told everyone that this was her own, individual decision that she felt was best for her game. She owned up to going against some deals, but hopes people can forgive her for it afterwards.

After the nomination ceremony, Aron wanted to speak to Lily privately. She agreed, and Aron asked why he put Celia up instead of him. Lily told him that it was her best chance at getting Darryl out this week. When asked why she didn't just put up Mai instead of Celia, so that Celia and Aron could control the vote, Lily immediately looked dumbfounded and realized her mistake. She told Aron that she had honestly forgotten about Mai being in the house or part of the game, and considered her to be a shadow of Darryl. She apologized to Aron, and said she'd still try to save Celia, but if it backfired that she was willing to work with him the following week to take down Darryl and Mai. Aron extended his hand, and Lily shook it.

Darryl went up to Nox, asking him if he knew what was going on. Nox said that Lily had been adamant about sending Darryl home this week, and was trying to convince him to do the same. Nox then went on to say that he was still loyal to Darryl and wanted to go to the finale with him. Darryl nodded, then just told him to vote out Celia if that was the case, and that they'd work together in the next week. Nox sighed, and explained to Darryl that it wasn't going to be that easy. Nox admitted he made a final two deal with Lily, so she believes that he is on her side. Darryl then said it was fine if Nox wanted to make it seem like they were working against each other instead of wanting to go to the end together, as long as they both made sure that they made it to the end safely no matter what. Darryl then left, thinking to himself how easy it was for him to make it to the finale at this point.

Aron and Celia cuddled up with each other for what they thought would be the last time. Celia asked Aron to sing another song for her, and he thought about what to sing. He remembered a song he wrote before he had entered the house, and sang it for her.

"Now, I don't got a lot of money,
But I don't think that matters, honey.
Just as long as it is sunny,
And you are here with me.
'Cause you know that those who stay together,
Through rugged terrain and stormy weather,
Is something people really treasure.
So that's just what we'll be."

He then admitted that he never finished writing that song, as he didn't know where to go from there. Celia said it didn't matter and that what he had was a good, short song all the same. They held each other close like their lives depended on it.

At the eviction ceremony, the votes were casted one by one. Once the votes were tallied, the results were revealed. By a vote of 2-1...Celia became the seventh person evicted from the playhouse.

Lily sighed, looking at Nox with a disappointed expression. Aron stood up as Celia did and went in to hug her, but she took it one step further and kissed him on the lips. After they kissed, Celia said goodbye to everyone, grabbed her bags, and walked out of the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Celia: Mai and Nox

Votes for Darryl: Aron

Week 8

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 8

Nox

Aron & Darryl

Aron

After the eviction ceremony, Nox went up to Lily to apologize for not voting to evict Darryl. He was just getting too intimidated by their clearly strong relationship and presence in the game, as that kiss Celia gave to Aron on the way out proved, and felt like there were still opportunities to take out Darryl before the final two. Lily accepted the apology, but said that Darryl would go on to win the game if he made it much farther. It was final five and they only had three more chances to take him out. Nox realized this and promised her that he would do his best to take him out this week.

Aron and Mai were in the same room together, not really talking to one another and doing their own little things. Mai eventually commented how small and quiet things were getting in the house, now that there were only five people compared to the original twelve. Aron blankly agreed, not really listening to what she was saying. Mai kept on talking about other things, and eventually Aron just snapped and asked her what she was doing with her gameplay. Mai turned towards him and took a step back in surprise. She asked what he meant, and Aron claimed that Mai was just wasting her time in the house, doing nothing but following Darryl around and basically giving him a second vote in the house. Mai said that she was fine with that, since it was her strategy since the beginning and it's gotten her this far into the game. Aron said that her strategy might allow her to make it far, but it'll never allow her to win. He said that she could still make a move or two and possibly have a chance at winning it, but as it stood, Aron believed no one would vote for Mai to win at the end except for maybe Darryl. Aron stood up and left, but on his way out told Mai that if she was ever willing to start playing the game, that he would always be open to talking about it. Mai stayed in the room she was in, pondering the possibility.

Darryl and Nox were in the kitchen, getting along and talking to each other. Darryl asked Nox if he thought he'd make it this far, and Nox said no. Nox told Darryl that he usually has a hard time relating to people, despite being a psychologist. He's able to analyze other people's behaviors and why they do certain things, but he still has trouble finding qualities of himself that are similar to others. He goes on to say this is why he's glad he met Darryl in the game, as they both are very logical and strategically-inclined minds. Darryl then pointed out that Nox also got along really well with Rocks and Meru, even though they weren't very big thinkers themselves. Nox shrugged, and said that the biggest thing that he was intrigued by in psychology was how well opposites attract. No matter what, as long as people have a common ground and get along okay to begin with, the differences can pile up from there and the relationship would still stay strong. Darryl then pointed out the example of him and Nox being more logical thinkers, but with Nox being more introverted while he was more extraverted. Nox said that was a perfect example. They talked some more and enjoyed each other's company, unaware that Lily was eavesdropping on their conversation from a nearby room.

At the eighth competition of the game, Nox won HoH once again. Knowing this week would be pivotal for his chances of getting to the finale, he needed to handle the nominations very carefully.

Lily went up to Nox, telling him that he better follow through with putting up Darryl this week and getting him evicted. Nox tells Lily to relax, and that he'll follow through with nominating Darryl. Lily said she'd be watching him, walking away and feeling doubtful of Nox's words.

Aron came up to Nox as well, essentially begging him to spare him from nomination and to put up the pair of Mai and Darryl, so a huge threat to win could be taken out of the game. Nox asked what was in it for him, and Aron repeated that getting out Darryl would benefit anyone. Aron said that Darryl would currently beat any of them in the finale. Nox smirked, saying to Aron that he believed Darryl wasn't playing a game as strong as Aron thought. However, Nox said he would consider it and would get an answer at the nomination ceremony. Aron thanked Nox for his time and led the HoH room.

Finally, Mai and Darryl came up to Nox together. Darryl told Nox to nominate him next to Aron, to which Nox agreed, claiming that he already had that plan in mind. Darryl then said that Mai would definitely vote for Aron, but if Lily was still after him, then Nox would have to either sway her to vote Aron, or be prepared to break the tie himself in front of Lily. Nox started getting a little worried, not considering that he would have to break a tie vote. He said he wouldn't let it get to a tie. Darryl asked Nox if he was prepared to potentially betray Lily by breaking the tie and voting Aron if necessary. Nox avoided it, saying he wouldn't let it get to that. Darryl raised an eyebrow, but decided to ease off of him. With that, Mai and Darryl both left the HoH room, leaving Nox to ponder.

At the nomination ceremony, Nox followed through and nominated Aron and Darryl. Lily rose an eyebrow while Aron sighed and sunk in his chair a bit. Darryl smiled, glancing at Lily quickly then looking at Nox.

Immediately following nominations, Lily met with Nox privately, asking why he put up Aron next to Darryl instead of Mai. Nox said that he still didn't want to take out Darryl just yet, but was leaving the possibility open anyways just in case his mind was swayed or Lily convinced Mai to join the plan. Nox then said that he really wanted to take out Aron, as he has had an underdog story piling up and one that only became more potent now that Celia was out of the game. Nox claimed that Aron would win against anyone in the end game, and that Aron would take out him and her if he got the chance. Lily sighed, telling Nox to just tell the truth next time instead of leading her on. Nox apologized, and just said that if she still wanted Darryl out that badly, to get Mai on board somehow. Otherwise, he was still leaning towards taking out Aron. Lily left the HoH room, dissatisfied with Nox's actions.

Lily proceeded to go to Aron, spilling everything about the things going on between her and Nox--their alliance, her attempts to take out Darryl and his resistance to it, and how she had been eavesdropping on Darryl and Nox talking like friends and allies rather than enemies ready to take each other out. Aron cursed under his breath, then said that at this point they had one option left to try and take out Darryl this week. Lily was hesitant, but knew that trying was better than doing nothing.

Lily and Aron both cornered Mai in a room, overwhelming her by their sudden and urgent presence. Aron proceeded to ask her if she thought about his earlier proposition, and she admitted that it had been on her mind quite a bit the whole week. He then said that if she was willing, her opportunity was here. Lily built upon it, saying that she had talked with other people who were now on jury before they got evicted and that they didn't really see anything from Mai's gameplay other than following Darryl around. She did add that it wasn't too late to change this perception if she just made a big move by no longer being a follower, and proving it by taking out the one she had been following--someone who was currently a huge threat to win the game anyways. It would be the biggest statement to the jury she could possibly give. Mai took it all in, and told them that she really had to think on it all by herself. She was feeling really overwhelmed by the current pressure and wanted some alone time. Aron and Lily nodded and left, allowing her to think on it. Mai paced around the room, legitimately troubled as to what she should do at the eviction.

The eviction ceremony occurred, and the votes were casted one by one. Once the votes were tallied, the results were revealed. By a vote of 1-1, it was a tie vote. Mai looked away from Lily and Aron, the former grumbling and hiding her face, the latter pounding a fist on the nomination chair in anger.

Nox slowly stood up, nervousness on his face. He glanced at Lily, who looked at him with pleading eyes. He then looked at Darryl, who calmly smiled at him with a trusting expression. Aron couldn't bring himself to look at Nox. Nox announced that as HoH, he would have to break the tie, and that he was voting to evict the person he truly felt was the biggest current threat to win the game. He took in a deep breath, let it out, and declared that he was voting to evict Aron. With that, Aron became the eighth person evicted from the playhouse.

Aron sighed, standing up and fistbumping Lily as he walked away. He didn't say goodbye or anything in response, simply grabbing his bags and heading out the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Aron: Mai, Nox (Tiebreaker)

Votes for Darryl: Lily

Week 9

HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 9

Lily

Darryl & Mai

Darryl

Following the eviction, Lily pulled Mai aside and asked her why she didn't make her move. Mai explained that she thought over it for quite a while, and ended up concluding that she was fine with just getting the runner-up money. At this point she just wanted to make it to the finale and earn some cash, as that was her goal all along. Mai said that she had always been following her family in their success, but wanted to prove that she didn't need her family in order to succeed. She believed that just getting to the end in a tough game like this would be enough to impress them. Lily didn't really understand the logic of not wanting to be seen as a follower to her family by getting to the end through following someone else's footsteps in the game. She didn't tell Mai this, though, and simply said that she understand the reasoning. Mai then left the room. Once Mai left, Lily started stretching her muscles in preparation for the next competition, as she figured winning the next HoH would be the only way to get what she wanted at this point.

Mai was walking around the house, remarking at how quiet and empty it was with only four people. It was a very eerie feeling to her. She ended up bumping into Nox, who wanted to chat. Nox said that he understood she was really tight with Darryl in the game, but wanted to know who she planned to go to the end with if Darryl wasn't there. Mai said that she hadn't really considered it before. Nox then proposed a final two between them, if Lily got her way and Darryl were to get out this week. Mai shrugged and supposed it was a good plan. They shook on it.

Later on, Darryl and Nox were sitting and chatting once again. Darryl told Nox that, at the final seven, he pictured himself getting here in every scenario he could imagine. Now that he was here, though, he was curious how much longer he'd last. Nox patted him on the back, saying that he'd probably stick around long enough to compete in that final HoH competition. Darryl smirked, and said he'd love to if he could, but was afraid of Lily somehow pulling out a win. At the competition, since Nox had already won and wouldn't be eligible and since Mai wasn't the best at the challenges, it would essentially be a battle between him and Lily. Nox reassured Darryl that he'd be able to make it. Darryl leaned back, crossing his arms and saying he hoped so.

At the ninth competition of the game, it was a close and intense battle between Darryl and Lily. However, Lily ended up beating Darryl, winning her third HoH and guaranteeing her a spot in the final three.

Following the competition, Nox frantically wants to talk to Lily. In the HoH room, Nox makes a late apology for not listening to her wants in the previous week and wanted to reconfirm that they were still good to go to the final two together. Lily said it was fine, everyone had their own priorities in this game, and that they were still good to go to the end together. Nox thanked Lily and left the HoH room, satisfied. Once Nox had left, Lily smirked and giggled at how worried and frantic Nox suddenly was--a state she hadn't seen him in before.

Darryl came up to the HoH room, alone for once. Lily asked where his shadow was, and he smiled, saying that Mai was downstairs like he wanted her to be. Darryl then said that he understood that Lily was after him and had been for a bit of time now. He commended her for being the last obstacle in his path to winning, and for having the guts to go against him for so long. He then said that he had a proposition for her. Lily raised her eyebrow, listening. Darryl said that she could take him out now, and lose a jury vote--potentially two if Mai was taken out after him--or she could allow Darryl to go to the final three, let Nox get evicted, and then allow the two of them to have a proper fight to the finish against one another via the final HoH competition. He also said that if he was bested in the final HoH competition, that he would vote for her over Mai due to respect. Lily immediately declined the offer, saying that she wasn't going to get his jury vote no matter what and had accepted it at this point. Darryl looked shocked for a second, then smiled and laughed. He admitted that he was surprised, but impressed that she managed to sense his bluff. He sighed, and then asked that she at least not talk to Nox and let it be his decision to make, as Darryl felt that Nox was a better fit than Mai to make the call of who should go to the final three with her. Lily hesitated for a moment, then agreed to those terms. With that, Darryl left the HoH room, feeling satisfied and thoroughly entertained.

At the nomination ceremony, Lily revealed that she nominated the duo of Mai and Darryl. Darryl smiled, while Mai looked concerned as it was her first time being nominated in the game.

Nox met with Darryl, talking and chatting together once more. Darryl remarked that he had never before had a friendship quite like the one he had come to have with Nox. Nox smirked, saying that a game like this makes all of the relationships something different than the ones on the outside world. Nox then decided to ask Darryl why he came to play this game, since he never really mentioned it at any point. Darryl admitted that he came to win. He wanted to come into the game, control how evictions went and people’s fates, and then go on to ultimately win it all. He certainly impressed himself with what he had managed to do up to that point, since he thought that he’d be out the moment he tried seizing power. He somehow survived that, though, and has managed to make it to this point thanks to his loyal friends. Nox smiled for a bit, then frowned a little. Darryl looked over, and asked Nox what the matter was. Nox sighed, then admitted that he would be voting to evict Darryl at the next eviction. He wanted Darryl to know in advance, so it didn’t come as a shock or surprise. Darryl took in a deep breath, let it out, reached for a bottle of wine and poured out a glass for himself. He drank the whole thing with slow, calm sips, taking in the taste. When he finally put the glass down, he closed his eyes and grinned the biggest grin he had the entire time in the game. He then said that glass of wine was one of the worst ones he had ever tasted, and both of them laughed over that. Darryl opened his eyes, looked at Nox, and said thank you. He then changed the subject, not wanting to dwell on his eviction for too long.

At the eviction ceremony, Nox stood up, being the only person able to evict anyways. He said that he had been working alongside the two nominees for quite a few weeks now, and was deeply saddened to have to split the two of them up so close to the endgame. He then went on to say that between the two nominees, he figured he’d have a better chance of getting to the end and winning the jury votes if he took one over the other. Nox then declared that his vote was to evict Darryl.

Lily smiled and sunk back into her seat, relaxed. Darryl stood up, telling everyone that it was a hell of a good game and wishing them all luck in the final competition. He then picked up his bags, and left through the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Darryl: Nox

Votes for Mai: ---

Week 10

Final HOH

Nominees

Evictee

Week 10

Lily

Mai & Nox

Mai

A few days after the eviction ceremony, the final three all walked over to the memory wall, seeing the pictures of all twelve houseguests still present on the wall. Nine of them were black and white, and only theirs remained in color. Mai said the house was a whole lot emptier and a lot more boring without them in the house anymore. Nox remarked that it was a tough journey and that he figured to be one of the black and white photos by now, but was glad he managed to tough it out and beat the odds to make it here. Lily looked at Edmond, Joe, Celia, and Aron, quietly remembering everyone who had helped her grow stronger and make it this far on her journey. They all took a few more minutes taking it all in, and remembering what it took to get them here. Finally, it was time for the final competition to begin.

In the first part of the final HoH, Nox ended up throwing the competition. Nox wanted to lose the final HoH, as he believed that either way he would be taken to the end and had no desire to potentially piss off a jury vote by making them the final juror. It came down between Lily and Mai, and in a close fight Mai finally won a competition, even if it was only a part of one.

Lily and Nox moved on to the second part of the final HoH, Nox making it seem like he was trying but still throwing the competition to Lily. Lily ended up winning part two without much struggle.

In the final part, it became a battle between Mai and Lily. In a very close and tight battle, Lily ended up triumphant, winning her fourth and final HoH. She teared up in joy over the realization, knowing that she had finally secured her spot at the final two and had made it all the way.

Immediately after the competition, the eviction ceremony was held. Lily said that her decision might cause her to lose the jury vote, but admitted that she didn’t care as long as someone deserving of the money--winner or runner-up--would get it. She then looked at Mai, and reminded her of the conversation they had where Mai said she didn’t care about winning, just getting the runner-up money. Lily then said that she didn’t feel like Mai was worthy of the runner-up money, even if Lily could beat her easily in the end. So, she voted to evict Mai.

Mai looked a little shocked, and Nox grinned in satisfaction. Mai said good luck to both of them, got her bags, and walked out the front doors of the playhouse.

Votes for Mai: Lily

Votes for Nox: ---

Finale

Finalist

Jury Votes

Lily

Aron, Celia, Edmond, Joe, Mai & Quincy

Nox

Darryl, Meru & Rocks

The finalists, Nox and Lily, both cheered in celebration of making it to the end. Their celebration couldn’t last long, however, as they would be facing the jury in just a few minutes. So, they composed their final thoughts, and prepared to present their games to the jury.The jury was composed of everyone who was evicted from the game (except for Dennis, since he was the first boot.)

Nox presented his game first, saying that early on he quickly gained power and control over the house, but when things started getting shaky at weeks four and five, he had to change his gameplay up and play up to other people and stay loyal to those he knew would stay loyal to him, even if it meant hurting his reputation and other people’s feelings. He admitted he played a rough and messy game, but that it managed to clean itself all up in the end.

Lily presented her game next, saying that she didn’t do things very early on, but through the help of people who wanted to help her and see her succeed, she realized that she needed to start playing the game in order to have a shot of just getting to the end, let alone winning. At the final seven, she realized the house was split up into pairs, her being the only one with a partner at that point. She explained that she had managed to navigate her way through this pairs, via making deals and winning two HoH competitions to take things into her own hands at the very end when she really needed it. She used her built-up image as a floater at the final seven to subtly try to control the game and quickly adapt when things didn’t quite go her way, ultimately being the only person to oppose Darryl in the house and still be left standing in the game, something Nox or Mai couldn’t admit to since they both wanted to go to the end with Darryl themselves.

The jurors asked question and the finalists answered them, and then the jurors went to vote. Before the votes were revealed, though, the finalists were told that they could remove one person’s jury vote in an attempt to get the jury vote to sway in their favor if it wasn’t already. Nox didn’t hesitate, cancelling out Edmond’s vote since he already knew how tight he was with Lily in the early weeks. Edmond’s vote was revealed to be for Lily. Lily thought a little bit, then decided to cancel out Rock’s vote, figuring that she would vote Nox as he was the only person who didn’t vote to evict her. Rock’s vote was revealed to be for Nox.

The final votes were revealed. And, by a vote of 5-2...Lily became the first Champion of the Playhouse! Lily jumped up, barely able to hold in her excitement. Nox slowly stood up, shaking her hand. Lily left the house first, paper confetti from Meru showering her on the way out. Nox followed her out, casually smiling and waving hello to everyone. The first season of Playhouse had ended, and thus the story closed for another one to start.